Policies

Policies of the Communications Section

Letters submitted for inclusion in the Communications section must pertain to an article or review that has appeared in the AHR. Acceptance for publication is at the discretion of the editors. The word limit is approximately 1,000 words.

The editors prefer to publish an exchange of letters. Thus any author or reviewer who is referenced in the original letter will be offered an opportunity to reply. The word limit for a response is the same as for the original letter. If the person referenced is on leave or researching abroad, reasonable efforts will be made to contact him or her. If no reply arrives, however, we will publish the original letter alone, placing any subsequent response from the person referenced in a later issue. The editors are neutral between the two parties in an exchange of letters.

All letters are checked for possible libel. No libelous statements that make the journal vulnerable to a lawsuit will be published. Once a letter has been approved by the editors, it is lightly edited for house style before being sent to the person referenced for a reply.

Letter writers do not receive page proof or advance copies of their published letters. All proofreading is done by AHR staff. Letter writers who are members will see their printed letter in the published issue. Letter writers who are not members will not receive a special copy of their printed letter. The original letter writer is not permitted to see the reply letter before publication.

Editing for house style includes correcting typographical and grammatical errors, standardizing punctuation, and providing a full reference to any AHR item mentioned. All AHR quotes are checked against the original for accuracy. Please do not use honorific titles, such as Mr., Professor, or Dr., that could be meant sarcastically. No titles or ranks will be used in the signature block except Emeritus and Emerita. An author who is responding to a review of his or her book in the AHR is usually not permitted to quote from other reviews of that book.

Letters for the Communications section can be sent by e-mail to ahr@indiana.edu. Letters sent through the postal service should be addressed to Editor, American Historical Review, 914 E. Atwater Avenue, Bloomington, IN 47401. Please make sure to include contact information in case we have questions about your letter.

In terms of copyright, the letters become the property of the American Historical Association.

The AHA disclaims responsibility for statements, of either fact or opinion, made by the writers.